Rutland County Council's Cabinet has given approval for public consultation to take place on a draft version of Rutland's new Local Plan, starting in November and running until January 2024.

The Local Plan sets out planning policies and opportunities for future development and investment in Rutland. It serves as a guide to what can be built and where - helping to determine planning decisions in the area and providing clarity on where development should take place over the next 15-20 years.

A Local Plan also covers:

• housing
• education provision
• transport infrastructure
• healthcare provision
• provision for leisure facilities
• open and green spaces

Rutland County Council is required to deliver a Local Plan by national planning policy. The Plan must identify how the Council will accommodate and prepare for growth in employment, transport, retail and housing. 

The Local Plan is also an opportunity to shape change in towns and villages in a sensitive and sustainable way. It will guide the provision of infrastructure to support growth and identify how much and where new housing and economic growth is required.

Following Cabinet approval, public consultation on a draft version of the new Local Plan (known as the Regulation 18 or Preferred Options stage of plan making) will run from Monday 13 November 2023 until Monday 8 January 2024 and will invite everyone in Rutland to give feedback and comments.

This follows on from an earlier Issues and Options consultation held in summer 2022, which asked people how they would choose to tackle a wide range of planning issues and proposed options for the future development of the county.

Councillor Paul Browne, Cabinet Member for Planning at Rutland County Council, said: "The new Local Plan is the keystone to future development in Rutland until 2041. The process started when we asked for your opinions in the "Issues and Options" consultation last year. We have learned a great deal from those responses.

"We are also very aware that the final version will be tested by Ministry Inspectors and they will look for the Plan to be evidence based (those evidence bases are shown on our website). This document therefore represents the first draft of a combination of those two factors.

"However, though this is only the next stage, it is the only stage where you can effectively make a difference to the Preferred Option proposals, within that Plan. We want to hear your views, on the whole or any part of it. We want you to provide the reasons for your views. This is a real opportunity now extended to you to make a valued contribution, and I urge you to respond".

More information on the Local Plan consultation and how to read and comment on the draft document will be shared prior to Monday 13 November. The Council cannot consider any comments or feedback on the Preferred Options Local Plan submitted prior to formal consultation getting underway. 

Further information about the local plan process and previous stages of plan-making can also be found online.

This consultation follows a string of online community discussions about the number of housing developments taking place across the county, limited upgrades to local infrastructure and difficulties accessing medical care and NHS dentists in the area - among other issues raised by Rutland residents.

What do you think is most important when it comes to the local plan?

Let us know by emailing [email protected].